web application

Hello, I have to design a web application with basic functionalites like login, access to databases, server side code(no EJBs). I see a lot of technologies like JavaServerFaces, STruts, content management sites(Zope,PLone,Mambo etc). How do I start? Basically I am not very good at client side stuff. How do I make a decision as to which technoligies to use or otherwise should i work from scratch writing html,javascript,servlets etc?? Regards, Shankar.

Before you choose technologies I guess you have to determine what kind of applications you are going to write... Are you going to build portals? Do you have to do a lot of complicated form validation? Do you have a lot of complex page navigation? Struts is becoming more or less a standard these days, but will probably get a lot of competition from JSF and the upcoming portlet technology. Struts does have a rather steep learning curve. JSF on the other hand looks very promising, but is still very young, and will probably change in the coming years....